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Ministry of Culture, Community & Youth
Parliamentary Matters

NAC’s support for the arts sector through spaces

Sectors

Arts

8 April 2026

NAC is reviewing rental rates at Goodman Arts Centre to ensure sustainability while maintaining affordability, and is exploring transition measures and grants to support affected artists.

*1779. Ms Gho Sze Kee: To ask the Acting Minister for Culture, Community and Youth with rentals at Goodman Arts Centre set to increase significantly (a) what measures are being considered to help tenant artists cope; and (b) what longer-term plans are there to ensure that affordable creative workspaces remain accessible to arts practitioners.

 Response:

  1. The National Arts Council (NAC) champions Singapore’s arts sector, and recognises that arts infrastructure is key to the development of a vibrant arts ecosystem. In land-scarce Singapore, NAC works closely with government agencies and private sector players to unlock and diversify arts spaces. Today, the total arts Gross Floor Area tracked by NAC currently stands at 94,000sqm1, a 42% increase since 2010. Affordable workspaces are also key to ensuring our artists and arts groups remain financially sustainable. To support our arts sector, NAC provides such spaces at rates below commercial rental levels.

  2. In considering the need for any rates adjustment, NAC takes into account rising operational costs for the maintenance of these spaces and the need to ensure that the revised rates remain affordable compared to other commercial spaces in the vicinity and other arts spaces.

  3. Goodman Arts Centre (GAC) provides a total of 77 units across both short-term venues and longer-term housing options. This includes 26 Project Studios for flexible short-term tenancies of up to 12 months for artists who have project-specific needs, and 51 units under the Framework for Arts Spaces scheme which supports arts groups up to 9 years and is subvented by NAC at up to 80%.

  4. The rental rates for Project Studios were last reviewed in 2012 and Arts House Group (AHG), the appointed operator for GAC, has absorbed rising operational costs since then. Although AHG had begun to engage arts tenants on a rate increase for greater sustainability, it will defer rate increases in 2026 to support arts tenants during this period of heightened economic uncertainty arising from the conflict in the Middle East. NAC and AHG will review the rates at the end of this year for 2027.

  5. In parallel, NAC is studying the sector’s longer-term needs and has been engaging and consulting the arts sector on their spatial needs and affordability of arts spaces. In planning for the future, NAC will take steps to ensure that arts spaces remain accessible and affordable for artists and arts groups.

  6. NAC also supports artists and arts groups through existing grants, such as the Creation Grant, Presentation and Participation Grant, which funds the creation, production and presentation costs of our artists and arts groups.

[1] Singapore Cultural Statistics (2025)